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What cut of meat is this?

I'll see if I can explain it properly.... I realize that if you look at cuts of meat on a beef cow, what we call back strap is usually called different cuts of the "loin". Personally, I've always called the tender"loin" the 2 tender slabs of meat tucked up on the inside next to the spine in the groin area of the animal.

Now if you've ever noticed when breaking down a moose, there is almost the same type of meat on the front end right up where the spine attaches to the neck, also on the inside, tucked up next to the spine. It's fairly small and not nearly as long or as big in diameter as the tenderloin on the opposite end. I do know for a fact though that it is every bit as tender and delicious as the tenderloin because two of us ate it fresh from the last moose we killed and, although I could have eaten more, there was enough of it there to pleasantly please both of us....

If I've explained it properly, I'm just wondering if any of you know of this piece of meat and what it might be referred to as, if it does in fact have a name at all...???

Thanks.....

Sheep hunting...... the pain goes away, but the stupidity remains...!!!

Thanks Steve....do they call it that on a beef cow as well? Before I posted this I looked at beef cut diagrams and didn't find any mention of it, unless they leave it on when cutting the bone as well? And yes, that's how we cooked it....chopped it up small, threw in a little cooking oil, salt and pepper, and seared it quick on fairly high heat. Delish...!!!

Edit.... Maybe not....after I posted this I googled "hanging steak" and this is what wiki said about it from a cow:

A hanger steak is a cut of beefsteak prized for its flavor. Derived from the diaphragm of a steer or heifer, it typically weighs about 450 to 675 grams (1 to 1 1⁄2 pounds). This cut is taken from the plate, which is the lower belly of the animal.

That's definitely not where I found this cut on the moose.....

Sheep hunting...... the pain goes away, but the stupidity remains...!!!

Longissumus dorsi is the backstrap muscle. The spinalis muscle is connected to it usually taken off together. The spinalis muscle is the outer piece on a ribeye or prime rib. I think it is the best piece of all the backstrap muscle group.

In the region I am in there is not a formal name that I am aware of the for cut you are referring to. Typically the spine in the Chuck is cleaned and the trimmings are ground. I have heard people referring to this cut as the "mock tender" before but the mock tender is actually up next to the top blade. I think that the people who refer to this as the "mock tender" are simply making an assumption based upon the name of the cut, i.e. the tenderloin is beneath the spine near the back of the animal so the small piece located near the front of the animal must be the "mock tender" but this is not correct as the mock tender is a totally separate cut. I have never selected that cut specifically but based on your experience I will give it a try the next time.

An interesting topic. You have the two backstraps on either side of the spine and the hanging tenderloins underneath the spine just forward the pelvic area. This forward tenderloin concept is one I never heard. I wish that tiny diagram gavre us more detail.

An interesting topic. You have the two backstraps on either side of the spine and the hanging tenderloins underneath the spine just forward the pelvic area. This forward tenderloin concept is one I never heard. I wish that tiny diagram gavre us more detail.

I call them the "neck tenders." Cows don't seem to have them. I 'm slaughtering some more today and I'll look. The "hanging tenders" in a beef are in the same region as the tenderloins. They can come out with the liver, lungs and rumen if you're not careful while gutting.

I call them the "neck tenders." Cows don't seem to have them. I 'm slaughtering some more today and I'll look. The "hanging tenders" in a beef are in the same region as the tenderloins. They can come out with the liver, lungs and rumen if you're not careful while gutting.

Well, I looked more carefully yesterday. I'm not sure if this piece has an official name; I've worked for 3 butchers, and all put this piece into hamburger or stew meat. Physiologically, it sits behind the lungs, and rests between the inside of the ribs and the spine. I'll try to post some pics.

20171010_094002.jpg20171010_093955.jpgPic one shows the hanging tenders to the left, neck tenders to the right. Brisket has been split open, you are looking through the brisket toward the spine. Second picture is zoomed out and focused more on the hanging tenders, which begin right where the tenderloins end. Liver, lungs and rumen are attached to these.